Mechanical test and fractal analysis on anisotropic fracture of cortical bone

Abstract The mechanical properties of the cortical bone of fresh bovine femora along three different directions are tested through four-point bending experiments. It is indicated that the fracture energy along the transversal direction of the bone is distinctly larger than those of the longitudinal and radial directions. The fracture surfaces of the three different directions are observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). It is shown that the roughness of the fracture surface of the transversal direction is obviously larger than those of the fracture surfaces of the longitudinal and radial directions. It is also revealed that the osteons in the bone are perpendicular to the fracture surface of the transversal direction and parallel to the fracture surfaces of the longitudinal and radial directions. Based on these experimental results, the fractal dimensions of the fracture surfaces of different directions are calculated by box-counting method in MATLAB. The calculated results show that the fractal dimension of the fracture surface of the transversal direction is remarkably larger than those of the fracture surfaces of the longitudinal and radial directions. The fracture energies of different directions are also calculated based on their fractal models. It is denoted that the fracture energy of the transversal direction is remarkably larger than those of the longitudinal and radial directions. The calculated results are in good agreement with the tested results.